What is the optimal source and amount of protein for senior citizens? That study that purported to show that diets high in meat, eggs, and dairy could be as harmful to health as smoking supposedly suggested that people under 65 who eat lots of meat, eggs, and dairy are four times as likely to die from cancer or diabetes. But if you look at the actual study, you’ll see that’s simply not true. Those eating lots of animal protein didn’t have four times more risk of dying from diabetes; they had 73 times the risk.
What about those that chose moderation, those in the moderate protein group, who got 10 to 19% of calories from protein? They just had about 23 times the risk of death from diabetes, compared to those consuming the recommended amount of protein, which comes out to be about 6 to 10% of calories from protein—around 50 or so grams a day….